Gloria Ann Cummins was born in Mobile, Alabama, on July 7, 1945, to Marie Louise Wells and Riley McGhee. Gloria was the seventh of nine siblings, all of whom were raised in the Catholic faith. In later years, she attended Our Lady of Fatima, where she taught Sunday School. She attended school at Barton Academy.
After school, Gloria married and the couple briefly lived in Chicago, Illinois, due to a job opportunity. It was not very long before she missed her hometown and she and her husband returned to Mobile, where she lived the rest of her life. As a lifelong Mobilian, Gloria worked various jobs, but found her most fulfilling role as a parent and homemaker. When her marriage ended, she struggled and sacrificed to raise her five children alone. She worked hard to provide for them and to instill in them the traditional values and morals that form a good foundation in life. A loving mother, she was always supportive of her children, often expressing her pride in them and their accomplishments.
Gloria was also very proud of her Scotch-Irish and Poarch Creek Indian ancestry, attending the occasional powwow to learn more about distant family members. She developed a lifelong interest in researching family history and genealogy. She enjoyed sharing old family history and the stories of the past with her children, thereby passing on to them the knowledge of their heritage.
Since her childhood, Gloria loved animals and felt sorry for those that were abandoned and uncared for. She had a soft spot for cats and could not look the other way when she saw one suffering or hungry. In her lifetime, she had many as pets, enjoying the unconditional love they gave.
Gloria's other interests and hobbies included a love of old movies and classic television shows. She was fond of 80's pop music and some classic rock. She enjoyed collecting memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz and Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit. As a member of both the Azalea City Pink Box Doll Club and the South Alabama Doll Cabinet, she participated in doll collector meetings, doll shows, and crafting. She was fond of owls and roosters in various renderings, but especially weathervanes. A great lover of Halloween and Christmas, each year found her adding to her collection of witch and ghost figurines, as well as both vintage and modern snowmen ornaments. She also collected holiday blow mold figures, lanterns, and string lights, as she loved things that brightened the dark.
Gloria Ann Cummins died at home of natural causes on April 30, 2023, at the age of 77. She was preceded in death by her parents and all of her siblings. To her great sorrow, she was also preceded in death by her beloved son Gregory Christian Cummins (Maggie). To cherish her memory, she is survived by her daughter Sylvia Dianne Cummins and son Mark Anthony Cummins with whom she shared a home until her death. She is also survived by her daughters Cynthia Cummins Khan and Karen Cummins Anwar and her daughter-in-law Maggie Cummins. She leaves behind five grandchildren--Eimaz Khan, Samir Khan, Amrina Anwar, Jahan Anwar, and Teagan Ferguson. They, along with her all of her extended family and friends, are deeply saddened by her loss and will miss her until we meet again.
A visitation for Gloria will be held Thursday, May 11, 2023 from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM at Radney Funeral Home, 3155 Dauphin Street, Mobile, Alabama 36606, followed by a funeral service at 1:00 PM.
Gloria will be laid to rest in Pine Crest Cemetery West, Mobile, Alabama.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.radneyfuneralhome-mobile.com for the Cummins family.
